Originally Posted By DAR <a href="http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20101021/ts_alt_afp/usmediaradioreligion_20101021061057" target="_blank">http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20...21061057</a>
Originally Posted By mawnck So, apparently, does being an idiot. I'm very much in favor of getting everybody who espouses such views as far away from broadcast outlets as possible. Let them peddle their trash on the street corner where we can throw tomatoes at them.
Originally Posted By Mr X "But when I get on the plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous." Sticking up for bigotry once again DAR? You must be so proud.
Originally Posted By disneydad109 the way Mr Williams spoke was that he knew he was wrong to feel that way. He gave me the idea that it was a knee jerk reaction that made him queston himself. He knew he was in the wrong.
Originally Posted By DAR "But when I get on the plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are wearing a Crucifix and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Christians, I get worried. I get nervous" Had he said that you probably would have been fine with that. But oh no we can't offend the Muslims they're too delicate to defend. Christians, Jews they're fair game.
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan >>Had he said that you probably would have been fine with that.<< But he didn't say that, so we'll never know. What he did say, however, is that he gets nervous seeing people in Muslim garb on an airplane. Which is curious, considering that the hijackers of 9/11 looked very westernized when they attacked.
Originally Posted By ecdc NPR has very strict guidelines for their employees that Mr. Williams certainly knew about. They instructed employees not to attend The Rally to Restore Sanity despite its claim of not being political. Curious...I thought businesses were supposed to be able to do what they want.... And since when is honesty a guarantee of continued employment. So if I'm honest and say I think my boss is ugly and I want to punch him in the face I should get to keep my job because I'm "honest?"
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan Juan Williams will continue to appear on Fox News. They don't have a problem with this sort of thing over there. In fact, it's rewarded. Probably will get his own show if he ramps up the rhetoric a bit more.
Originally Posted By DAR I wouldn't doubt the majority of us when we see someone of Middle Eastern descent board a plane we give a second glance or think the worst in our minds even for a second.
Originally Posted By ecdc For NPR, the issue isn't his thoughts, it's his perceived lack of objectivity.
Originally Posted By ecdc BTW, the whole "Muslims are a protected class while Christians are picked on" is a conservative myth in the same vein as "liberal media."
Originally Posted By Kar2oonMan Yes, it's a phony argument. Someone says something offensive, they always preface it with "this may not be PC but...". Every time. Williams did it too. "You know I'm not a racist, but..." Guess what? Declaring yourself not a bigot and then saying bigoted things makes you... bigoted. Tough cookies. Now, it may not be PC to say that, but... ; )
Originally Posted By DAR For some of you do take the stairs or an elevator to get on and off your high horse?
Originally Posted By ecdc Oh goodie. Yet another DAR temper tantrum. I've seen this movie before and it wasnt good the first 50 times. I'm out of this thread. Enjoy, folks.
Originally Posted By DAR Answer my question, have any of you given a second glance at a Middle Eastern person when they're boarding a plane?
Originally Posted By gadzuux Stand back - I'm aligning with Dar on this one. I don't think what Williams said is necessarily racist or even out of line. I've been listening to him for years now, and have a pretty good handle on how his thought processes work. He's not a racist. What he said was recognizing a reality that we all live with - if I were boarding a plane and I saw people in muslim garb, my mind would quickly flash to "gee, what if". And I don't think I'm a racist either. I think Juan Williams got a raw deal. He's a pundit, an "analyst" and NPR seems to be saying that he's restricted on what he can or cannot say, even when what he's saying is eminently reasonable. I suspect he'll be just fine - he'll get some gig somewhere else quickly, and not just on Fox. He's on fox all the time anyway. There - I said it.
Originally Posted By DAR And why is it everytime that I post something you guys always think I'm wrong for once could think that I'm correct about this and other things.